DESCRIPTION 



mwMs. I^lkgorital lamfmg 



WITHIN THE 



CAl^OPY OF THE ROTUl^DA. 



BY S. U. •W-yHTII, 



Author of the "Federal City; or, Ins and Abouts ofWashington,' 
" Harry Bright, the Drummer Boy," etc., etc.- 



WGTl SA-X^XS 11^ THE CA.I»I'X'OX<, 



WASHINGTON t 

Gibson Brothers, Printers 
1868. ■ 






Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1868, by 

GIBSON BROTHERS, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Columbia, 

Gift 

W. I*. Shoeiaaker 

7 S '06 



r>E!SCK,II»TI01V 



BY 

B R U M I D 1, 

WITHIN THE CANOPY OF THE ROTUNDA. 



To an American the Rotunda of the Capitol is replete with 
interest. 

He feels his heart beating within him as he treads the solid 
floor. Pictures, and works in alto i-elievo, crowd on the sight, 
and, from them all, come glimpses of proud historic teachings. 

Up, still higher, above the painted iron caissons, which, like 
huge plates of overlying mail, approach the far-away roof, 180 
feet, the fresco by Brumidi arrests the gaze, as though the sky 
had opened, and it were permitted to look into the " Beyond." 

Clouds of gold, azure, and rose, seem hanging there, spanned 
by a rainbow, and, floating among them, forms of exquisite 
beauty. Grand mythological figures, symbolizing Force and 
Progress, appear there too, Titanic — majestic ; almost appalling 
with their great significance. The calm glorious faces of the 
great American dead, also look down with eyes that seem 
living eyes, from out the mysterious dizzy height of the huge 
concave. 



The Dome consists of two shells of iron ; an outer and an 
inside shell. The outer shell is pierced with openings. Ee- 
Sectors are so placed, that the admitted"light falls full upon the 
inside of the Canopy, and illumines the picture. At night, a 
circle of 425 gas jets (that are ignited by electricity) surround- 
ing the base of the Canopy, fills this portion of the Dome with 
light brighter than that of day. 

A stairway winds up between the two shells, and views of 
the picture can be obtained at diflferent heights. Just beneath 



THE FEDERAL CITY. 

the base of the Canopy a railed gallery traverses the circuit of 
the Dome. There is also another gallery, considerably lower 
down, surrounding the Eotunda. 

CENTRAL GROUP OF THE PICTURE. 

Washington, the Saviour of his Country, apotheosized, 
appears seated in majesty. On his right is the Goddess of 
Liberty, and, on his left is a winged idealization of Victory 
and Fame — sounding a trumpet, and in triumph displaying 
the victor's palm. 

Before the three, forming a semicircle, are thirteen female 
figures. The head of each is crowned with a star. They hold 
up a ribbon banner on which is inscribed, E Pluribus Unum. 

These figures represent the thirteen sister States of 
Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Con- 
necticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New 
Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and 
KnoDE Island — the original British Colonies — that fought, 
and bled, and conquered — winning freedom, and the right to 
sing and shout the glad " morning hymn " announcing the 
coming dawn of man's Millennial Day. 

The coloring of the drapery, the forms, and the attitudes, of 
these figures, and the leaves and blossoms entwined in their hair, 
betoken the States they represent. The subdued delicate 
green of the Northern States changes to brighter and deeper 
tints, until they warm into golden hues. There is symboled 
the grass and maize of the North, the wheat of the West, the 
tobacco of the Middle States, and the cotton of the South. 

Signer Brumidi, in his grouping of the States, has linked 
them together geographically, and not according to the order in 
which they adopted the Federal Constitution. The figure on 
the extreme left of Washington represents New Hampshire, then 
in semicircular sweep succeed Massachusetts, Ehode Island, Con- 
necticut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Dela- 
ware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. 



THE FEDERAL CITY. 

Below this centre group are six others, surrounding the 
base of the Canopy. 

The first, occupying the west, is 

WAR. 

Feeedom, terrible in vengeance, with upraised sword, is 
striking down Tyranny and Kingly Power. They are over- 
come, and fleeing from her wrath in dismay ; with them is 
Anger, and also Revenge and Discord bearing the incendiary 
torch. 

An angry Eagle, striking with his beak, is fighting for, — 
and by the side of, Freedom. 

The second, is 

A G-RI CULTURE. 

This conception, in all its details, is softly beautiful, as the 
other is sublime in its exhibition of, destructive power. 

Ceres, the Goddess of Harvests and the Fields, with the 
Horn of Plent}^, is in the centre. 

Young America, with Liberty Cap, of red, the bonnet rouge 
of France, having under his control a pair of vigorous horses 
hitched to an American Reaper, in conscious pride is exhibiting 
his skill. 

The back ground is a luxuriant mass of prolific American 
vegetation. Flora is gathering flowers, and, lingering near, 
is a child. Beyond is Pomona with a basket of fruit. 

Then, succeeds 

MECHANICS 

YuLCAN, the old stalwart Tubal Cain of Grecian mythology, 
is the colossal genius of this group. His right foot rests on a 
cannon. 



THE FEDEEAL CITY. 

Machinery, forges, mortars, and cannon balls, strewn around, 
remind us of forging thunder bolts, as well as of combat with, 
and victory over, the giant forces of nature, and making them 
subservient to human v/ill, and purposes. 

The next, and occupying the east, is 



COMMERCE. 

Mercury, the Protector of Travellers and Merchants, holds 
in his hand a bag of gold, to which he is directing the attention 
of Egbert Morris, the Financier of the American Eevolution. 
It was he who guided to a successful issue the entangled 
pecuniary embarrassments of our country in its struggle for 
independence. Alas ! for himself, he died a bankrupt, and in 
confinement for debt. 

Boxes of merchandise, and bales of goods, with men at work 
among them, are to be seen. Two sailors point to a gunboat 
in the distance. 

The group beside this, symbolizes the 



MARINE. 

Neptune, in marine state, bearing his trident, in his car, 
accompanied by his charioteer and attendants, is emerging 
astonished from the deep. 

The beautiful Aphrodite, [Yenus], born of the sea foam, 
half risen from the waves, holds in her hand the Atlantic cable, 
given her by a winged cherub, and is about dropping it into 
the sea. 

The last, is 



THE FEDERAL OITY 



THE ARTS AND SCIENCES. 

Minerva, the Goddess of Wisdom, stands gloriously promi- 
nent, with helmet and spear, as she sprang, full grown, from 
the brain of Jupiter. 

In meek attitudes, but with glowing faces, attentive to her 
teachings, are Benjamin Franklin, Printer and Philosopher, 
Robert Fulton, of Steamboat renown, and S. F. B. Morse, 
the generally acknowledged inventor of the Magnetic Telegraph. 

There are also boys, with wondering eyes, and expressive 
gestures, listening to the instructions of a school teacher. 

This painting covers an area of 4664 square feet. The 
circumference of the base of the Canopy is 205 feet, 4 inches; 
its diameter is 65 feet, 4 inches, and its height from base to top, 
in a straight line, is 20 feet, 7|- inches. [These dimensions were 
obtained at the office of Edward Clark, Esq., present Architect 
of the Capitol Extension and the New Dome, a pupil of the 
Designer and former Architect, Thomas U. Walter, Esq.] 

An art critic has remarked of this fresco : 

" That, whether considered as regards the conceptions of the 
artist, the perfection of coloring and drawing, the faultless 
grouping, or the peculiar characteristics that adapt it to the 
concave surface on which it is painted, and to the great distance 
from which it must be viewed, the picture is a master piece of 
art. 

"In foreshortening, coloring, and proportion, its position 
has required the study of effects to be produced at an altitude 
of nearly two hundred feet, and Mr. Brumidi, in addition to his 
powers of genius, has been obliged to bring into requisition the 
learning and mature study of the highest schools of art." 



THE FEDERAL CITY, 



Signer C. Brumid^ 



It is natural to desire to know something of the artist to 
whom we are indebted for this painting. Signor C. Brumidi 
is an Italian, and was born in Rome in 1811. He came to 
America in 1852, and is a naturalized citizen of the United 
States. 

He has been mainly engaged for years in ornamenting 
various portions of the walls of the Capitol, and his name will 
ever be associated with the history and beauty of our world- 
renowned national building. 

He recently also painted the frescoes which adorn the Cathe- 
dral of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, in Philadelphia. 

Coat of the Picture, etc. 

The amount of appropriation made for this fresco picture 
was forty thousand dollars. 

The preparation of the plaster ground-work for the artist, 
requiring the most careful judgment, was the work of Mr. 
Joseph Beckert, who also prepared the wall for Lcutze's 
picture of "Western Emigration" above the western staircase 
leading to the gallery of the Hall of the House of Eepresenta- 
tives. The wall preparation for these two pictures was, how- 
ever, very different — one being for a fresco and the other for a 
painting in stereochrorne. 



The stairway still continues its ascent above the picture, and 
traverses the top of the Canopy, between the two shells, until it 
reaches the "Tholus" or "Lantern" a- top of the Dome. 

Around the base of the Lantern, outside the Dome, is a 
circular railed gallery, or promenade, from which is a view, on 
all sides so magnificent, that it will never be forgotten by any 
who have climbed the height. No visitor to the "Federal 
City " should fail to avail himself of the privilege of making 
the ascent, which, though long and wearisome, is unattended 
with danger. 



For sale in the Capitol : 

Cljc Jfbfral fit^; or, |ns niiii %{m\ts of SSlHsjimgton. 

Published by Gibson Brothers, 271 and '11.', Pcnnsyh'ania Avenue, 

■•KKKRg KOll Tin-; nOOK SUPPLIED BY THE PUBLISHEKS. PiilCE 75 CTS A NUMBEK. 

QpfniQns Q)f the Press. 
Fi-om the " Washington Chronicle." 
" Webave froui the publishers, 'The Federal City ; oit, [ns axd Aboutsof Wash- 
ington, BY S D Wyeth,' and very chcerliilly- do \vc say of this brochure, that it 
is the A'ery best wc have ever read of the kind. if ihe wretched catch-penny 
publications about Washington and the Federal Capilal could be collecttd iind 
committed to the flames, it would be a public service; especially now, when the 
District of Columbia has entered upon a new career, and when everything written 
or done about it should be carefully written and thoughtfully done These pages 
are evidently tlic work of a scholar. There is no bombast, and no straining for 
fine writing; but evident industry and a desire to bo accurate. The type, paper, 
printing, etc., are indicative of a determination to make the woi'k standa;d We 
copy in our present issue, as a specimen of Ihc descriptive power.s of .Mr. W'yktu." 
his sketch of the United States Sena'.e." 

From the " National Intelligencer." 

'• We have received the first number of 'The Federal City : oit, Ixs axd Ahohis 
OF Washington, by S. D Wyeth,' which is to be completed in seven more. It is 
printed in large type, on fine paper, and liberally illustrated. 

" The author's style is clear and graceful, and he has given us, within ii hundred 
pages, a vast ainount of information — historical, statistical, and reflective — 
which will not only serve as an efficient guide for all visitors to the capilal, bnc 
must be very valuable as a permanent work, for reference, for all time to come 

'• The illustrations are beautifully executed, and a true taste is exhibited in 
making the principal one a photographic copy of Vanderlj'u's celebrated painting 
of ' The Landing of Columbus ' — one (and the first in point of time) of the eight 
great historical pictures which adorn the Capitol This fine photograph is by 
Gard.\er, whose works are well known all over the country, and wc have, thus, 
instead of an engraving, an actual reflex of the painting itself. [Photographs of 
the seven other pictures will appear, one in each of the subsequent numbers of the 
work ] 

' We have read this book with care, and are, therefore, prepared to pronounce 
it not only accurate, and hence instructive, but very pleasing, and to predict for 
it an exiensive circulation ; for, as it is recorded in the opening lines : ' The city 
of Washington is far dearer to the nation's heart now than it was before the 
breaking out of the rebellion The treasure expended, and the blood spilled in its 
defence, have made it seem, to patriots, sacred as a shrine. '' To want to know 
all about it " is a national longing, anl to gratify thi's, in some degree, is the 
design of the present book.' " 

From the " Washingtoi: Evening Star,"' 

■ Tuii Fi;ui;[;Ar, City : or. Ins and AcoaTS op Washington, by S, D. Wyeth.' 
is published in admiiable style by Gibson Brothers It is both readable and useful, 
containing a large amount of new material agreeably presented.' 

From the "National Republican." 
'■ .Mr. Wyeth, in the 'Federal City,' gives a description of everything of 
public interest in and about the city of Washington. The work will be an 
invaluable one both at home and abroad." 

From the " Sunday-School Times." 
"The first instalment of ' 'The Federal Ctty/' 108 handsomely printed 8vo 
pages, gives promise of a work of considerable interest. .Mr. Wyeth informs us it 
is to consist of the following parts: 1. The Book of the Capito! ; '2. The White 
House and its inmates; 3. Book of the Departments : 4. Book ol\ilie Hospitals; 
5. lijsti'.uiions of Benevolence. Learning, etc 



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